Title 27 — Professions and Occupations
22 chapters · 534 sections in this title.
27 V.I.C. § 161j Registration of licenses; annual fees, revocation or suspension
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(a) Every person who obtains a license under the provisions of this subchapter, shall, within 30 days after issuance, register the license in the office of the Commissioner of Health. Thereafter such license shall be annually registered as a condition to further practice upon pay…
27 V.I.C. § 161k Exemption from subchapter
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(a) The provisions of this subchapter, insofar as they relate to examinations and registrations of optometrists, shall not apply to duly commissioned or appointed optometrists in the service of the United States Government with respect to the performance of any official duties. (…
27 V.I.C. § 161l Construction of chapter; penalty for practice without a license
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(a) No person shall engage in the practice of optometry in this territory unless such person has first obtained a license from the Department Health, but the provisions of this chapter shall not prevent a licensed optometrist from delegating optometric services to either a traine…
27 V.I.C. § 161m Continuing education requirements for annual license renewal
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(a) Every optometrist actively engaged in the practice of optometry in the Virgin Islands, shall submit satisfactory proof that he has attended, during the twelve-month period immediately preceding the date of registration, at least twelve (12) clock hours of continuing education…
27 V.I.C. § 165 Definitions
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(a) “Physical therapy” means treatment of a human being by the use of exercise, massage, heat or cold, air, light, water, electricity, or sound, for the purpose of correcting or alleviating any physical or mental condition or preventing the development of any physical or mental d…
27 V.I.C. § 165a License required
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(a) All physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who practice physical therapy in the Virgin Islands are required to have a license in compliance with the terms of this subchapter. (b) A physical therapist licensed under this subchapter may perform physical therapy s…
27 V.I.C. § 165b Powers and duties of Board
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(1) The Board shall:(1) Evaluate the qualifications of physical therapist and physical therapist assistant applicants for licensure;(2) Provide for the examination of physical therapists and physical therapist assistants;(3) Issue licenses to persons who meet the qualifications o…
27 V.I.C. § 165c Application for license
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(a) An applicant for a license as a physical therapist shall:(1) Complete the application process including payment of a fee of $200;(2) Submit proof of graduation from a professional physical therapy education program accredited by a national accreditation agency approved by the…
27 V.I.C. § 165d Examinations
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(a) The Board shall provide for examinations to applicants who comply with section 165c of this subchapter. (b) The physical therapist examination must be a national examination that tests entry-level competence related to physical therapy theory, examination and evaluation, diag…
27 V.I.C. § 165e Issuance of license after examination
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The Board shall issue a license to each applicant who passes the examination in accordance with standards fixed by it and who is not disqualified to receive a license under the provisions of section 165i of this subchapter.
27 V.I.C. § 165f Issuance of license without examination
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(1) On payment to the Board of a fee of $15, and on submission of a written application on forms provided by the Board, the Board shall issue a license without examination to:(1) a person filing said application within 6 months from the effective date of this Act who presents evi…
27 V.I.C. § 165g Temporary licenses
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On payment to the Board of a fee of $10, and the submission of a written application on forms provided by it, the Board shall issue without examination, a temporary license to practice physical therapy in the Virgin Islands for a period not to exceed one year to any person who me…
27 V.I.C. § 165h Renewal or reinstatement of license
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(a) All licenses issued by the Board shall expire on the 31st day of December of the second year next succeeding the issuance thereof. A license may be renewed on the payment to the Board of a fee of $200.00 for physical therapists, and $100 for physical therapists assistants on …
27 V.I.C. § 165i Regulation of physical therapy ethical practice
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(a) A physical therapist shall adhere to the recognized standards of ethics of the physical therapy profession as established by the Physical Therapist Code of Ethic; (b) Use of Titles and Terms; Restrictions; Classification of Violation(1) A physical therapist shall use the lett…
27 V.I.C. § 165j Fees
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All fees collected by the Board shall be deposited in the general fund of the Virgin Islands through the Commissioner of Health.
27 V.I.C. § 165k Discipline and enforcement
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(a) Grounds for denial and revocation of a license. The following are grounds for denial of a license or disciplinary action:(1) Violating any provision of this subchapter, Board rules or a written order of the Board;(2) Obtaining or attempting to obtain a license by fraud or mis…
27 V.I.C. § 165l Exemptions from licensure
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(a) This subchapter does not restrict a person licensed under any other law of this Territory from engaging in the profession or practice for which that person is licensed if that person does not represent, imply or claim that he is a physical therapist, physical therapist assist…
27 V.I.C. § 165m Change of name, address or telephone number
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Each licensee is responsible for reporting a name change and changes in business and home address, email address and telephone numbers to the Board within 30 days of the change.
27 V.I.C. § 165n Reporting violations; immunity
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(a) A person, including, but not limited to, a licensee, corporation, insurance company, health care organization or health care facility and Territorial governmental agencies, shall report to the Board any conviction or determination by an agency or court that a licensee has com…
27 V.I.C. § 165o Rights of consumers
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(a) The public shall have access to the following information:(1) A list of licensees that includes place of employment, business address and telephone number of record, license number, date of license expiration and status of license;(2) A list of final disciplinary actions take…
27 V.I.C. § 166 Definitions
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(a) As used in this subchapter except where otherwise provided—(a) “Government agency” means any governmental entity, board, bureau, commission, department, agency, division, authority, office, or agent, or semi-private governmental entity receiving governmental funds for its ope…
27 V.I.C. § 166a Application of subchapter
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To be qualified under the provisions of this subchapter, a health care provider must be covered by the Government of the Virgin Islands, Department of Health's Self-Insurance Retention Program or any other insurance policy as provided for in section 166e of this Title.
27 V.I.C. § 166b Limitation on recovery; punitive damages; wrongful death
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(a) The total amount recoverable for any injury of a patient may not exceed two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) per occurrence. (b) The only damages which may be awarded in an action under this subchapter are the following:(1) economic damages; and(2) noneconomic da…
27 V.I.C. § 166c Claim not assignable
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A patient's claim for compensation under this subchapter is not assignable.
27 V.I.C. § 166d Statute of limitations
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(a) No claim, whether in contract or tort, may be brought against a health care provider based upon professional services or health care rendered or which should have been rendered unless filed within two (2) years from the date of the alleged act, omission or neglect except that…
27 V.I.C. § 166e Health care provider group insurance policy
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(a) The Commissioner of Health is hereby authorized and directed to procure a group insurance policy which shall cover the cost of Professional Liability Insurance for health care providers as defined in section 166(c) of this subchapter. Health care providers who engage in priva…
27 V.I.C. § 166f Attorney's contingency fee
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(a) A contingency fee for an attorney representing a plaintiff prosecuting a medical malpractice claim shall not exceed twenty-five percent (25%). (b) The limit on an attorney's contingency fee required by this section is subject to the discretion of the court to increase or decr…
27 V.I.C. § 166g Reporting and review of claims
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(a) All malpractice claims settled or adjudicated to final judgment shall be reported to the Commissioner of Health by the plaintiff's attorney and by the health care provider or his insurer within sixty (60) days following final disposition of the claim. The report to the Commis…
27 V.I.C. § 166h Liability of insurer controlled by this subchapter
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(a) Any provision in a policy attempting to limit or modify the liability of the insurer contrary to the provisions of this subchapter is void. (b) The policy procured pursuant to section 166e of this subchapter is deemed to include the following provisions, and any change which …
27 V.I.C. § 166i Medical Malpractice Action Review Committee
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(a) There is established within the Office of the Commissioner of Health a Medical Malpractice Action Review Committee (referred to in the rest of this section as “the Committee”) the purpose of which shall be to arrange for expert review of all malpractice claims before actions …
27 V.I.C. § 166ia Counterclaim by health care provider for frivolous complaint
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(a) Any health care provider, including a facility or institution, may file a counterclaim against a person filing a complaint under this chapter, alleging that the complaint filed is frivolous. If the court finds that the complaint is frivolous it may award to the successful par…
27 V.I.C. § 166ib Itemized verdict and court decision; installment payment of future damages
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(a) In any action tried under this subchapter the court shall instruct the jury that if the jury finds a verdict awarding damages it shall in its verdict specify the applicable elements of economic and noneconomic damages upon which the award is based and the amount assigned to e…
27 V.I.C. § 166j Health Care Consumer Complaint Review Committee
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(a) The Legislature finds that there is a public need to improve the review of the quality of health care delivery and to improve the communication between the patient and health care provider. Therefore, there is established within the Office of the Commissioner of Health a Heal…
27 V.I.C. § 166k Annual reports
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The Medical Malpractice Action Review Committee and the Health Care Consumer Complaint Review Committee established by this subchapter shall each file a summary report of each calendar year's activities by the first day of February of the next calendar year. A copy of the report …
27 V.I.C. § 166l Subchapter not retroactive
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The provisions of this subchapter do not apply to any act of malpractice which occurred before the effective date of this subchapter.
27 V.I.C. § 166m Repealed. June 17, 1993, No. 5864, § 6, Sess. L. 1993, p. 97
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27 V.I.C. § 166m Statutes current through Act 9046 of the 2025 session of the 36th Legislature, including all code changes through October 25, 2025 Virgin Islands Code AnnotatedCopyright © 2026 All rights reserved.
27 V.I.C. § 167a Practice of chiropractic defined
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(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Practice of chiropractic” means the diagnosis and treatment of human ailments, as taught by a school or college of chiropractic accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education, recognized by the United States Department of Education, includ…
27 V.I.C. § 167b Unlawful practice of chiropractic
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It shall be unlawful for any person to practice or to offer to practice chiropractic in the Virgin Islands, or to use any title, abbreviation, sign, card or device to indicate that such person is practicing chiropractic, except as provided in this subchapter.
27 V.I.C. § 167c License required
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(a) Any person desiring to practice chiropractic in the Virgin Islands shall obtain a license to do so in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter. (b) A license issued pursuant to this subchapter for chiropractic practice shall be issued for a period of two years.
27 V.I.C. § 167d Powers and duties of Board
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(a) As used in this subchapter, “Board” means the Virgin Islands Board of Chiropractic Examiners established under 3 V.I.C. § 415(b)(7) and authorized to operate under this subchapter. (b) Members of the Board of Chiropractic Examiners shall serve a term of four years and may be …
27 V.I.C. § 167e Application for license; qualifications
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(1) Applications for licensures shall be sent to the Board at least six weeks prior to the examination provided for by section 167f of this subchapter which the applicant desires to take, and shall be accompanied by the prescribed examination fee and by proof satisfactory to the …
27 V.I.C. § 167f Examinations
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(a) The Board shall hold regular examinations twice a year in the Virgin Islands on the second Wednesday of June and November for admission to practice chiropractic. The examination shall have a written and an oral component, and shall cover such subjects as the Board prescribes,…
27 V.I.C. § 167g Fees for examination and license certificate
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ExaminationLicenseCertificateChiropractors$145.00$5.00All fees shall be paid in accordance with regulations issued by the Board or incorporated in its by-laws. Any person, upon showing of proper justification, or who fails to pass the required examination, shall be admitted to on…
27 V.I.C. § 167h Issuance of licenses by Commissioner of Health; temporary licenses
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The Board shall report its recommendations with respect to all applications to practice, including the results of all examinations and the Board's investigation of the moral character and qualifications of applicants, to the Commissioner of Health who, upon due consideration that…
27 V.I.C. § 167i Registration of licenses; annual fees; revocation or suspension
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(a) Every person who obtains a license under the provisions of this subchapter, shall, within 30 days after issuance, register the license in the office of the Commissioner of Health. Thereafter such license shall be biennially registered as a condition to further practice upon p…
27 V.I.C. § 167j Use of X-ray
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(a) A license to practice as a chiropractor shall not permit the holder thereof to use radio-therapy, fluoroscopy, or any form of ionizing radiation except X-ray and imaging which may be used only as follows:(1) X-ray and imaging may be used for diagnostic and analytical purposes…
27 V.I.C. § 167k Limitations of practice
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(a) A license to practice chiropractic shall not permit the holder thereof to treat for any infectious or communicable diseases, any of the cardio-vascular-renal or cardio-pulmonary diseases, any surgical condition of the abdomen such as acute appendicitis, or any benign or malig…
27 V.I.C. § 167l Use of titles
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The title “Doctor”, “Doctor of Chiropractic” or its abbreviation “D.C.” shall not be used unless the chiropractic physician is the holder of an earned degree of Doctor of Chiropractic from an educational institution duly recognized by the Board, and the designation of “Chiropract…
27 V.I.C. § 167m Penalties
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Whoever practices chiropractic in the Virgin Islands as covered by this subchapter without having first obtained the license prescribed herein, or willfully violates any of the provisions of this subchapter, or any rules and regulations issued hereunder, shall be fined not more t…
27 V.I.C. § 168a Practice of podiatry defined
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A podiatrist is a person licensed to practice podiatry who is entitled to perform any or all of the acts prescribed in this section. A person practices podiatry who holds himself out as able to and does diagnose, treat, operate and prescribe for any disease, injury, deformity or …